Conservative Renewal: the Party's future post 2024
If there is one undeniable fact, it is this: 2024 represented a bleak moment in the Conservative Party’s long and storied history. Despite the best efforts of many of us, our party received its lowest result since its foundation, losing, any great constituency representatives and bright young minds who sought to innovate for and lead the British people. This is something which, having lost my own Conservative MP in Corby and East Northamptonshire, I am well familiar with. Already we are seeing the adverse results of Labour’s government in both domestic and foreign affairs: our country’s eldest generations are seeing themselves deprived of the means to heat their homes through what has been an exceptionally cold winter, the world-besting advancements Conservatives have introduced to our nation’s education system are being reversed in the name of naked socialist ideology, and our country is surrendering territory to strategic rivals, and paying for that privilege. Though we have made some progress in recovering as a party and preparing ourselves for the next general election, there is still more work to be done. Across many constituency associations throughout Britain, there is one persisting question: where do we go from here?
Organisationally, our party must do more. No success is possible, in 2029 or afterwards if we continue to be reliant on a CCHQ which remains in the analogue age and unwilling to allow alternative voices into strategic discussions. In a political epoch where culturally conservative positions are becoming stronger, we can not continue to persist with the outdated, some may argue discredited, ideals of the turn of the millennium. That is why we must simultaneously look to have numerous factions of the Conservative family represented in its institutions, and we must allow constituency associations the freedom to select parliamentary candidates who will support their area’s interests. Some have called for the relocation of CCHQ outside of London, this is not required so long as those inside of the building are effective and represent our party. Though we can avoid going too far, something must be done to provide the building blocks of our renewal.
In the field of economics, it is understandable that as Conservatives we wish to emphasise the liberating force of the free market at every possible opportunity. Nonetheless, we must understand that not all of our country has been able to experience the freedoms and opportunities that should come with this. Nowhere is this more apparent than in my own generation, Generation Z: where the previous certainties of homeownership and family life are too many mere distant wishes. Our economic vision must account for the disappointment and desires of these neglected voices and continue our party’s long and proud history of economic innovation. If we do not do this, then our party’s future is bleak. At the last general election, the only demographic age group to vote plurality Conservative was those above the age of 70, contrasted by a mere 10% of voters aged 18-24. This cannot stand. That is why we must be ambitious in our economic policies and offer the hope of achieving life’s most important ambitions for these neglected communities. Some elements of this can be done relatively swiftly, Child Tax Credit could for example be frontloaded so that the majority of this funding is received during those early month’s essential to the development of a child. Others may be more ambitious in scope, such as infrastructure development emphasising high capacity, beautifully built residences within roughly 10 minutes walking to public transport. Nonetheless, both are vital steps to restoring the trust of the British people and allowing our party to renew.
Equally, we must fight the left on cultural battles, and fight to win. For if we do not, we are already seeing the costs of allowing the left’s ideological vision to be implemented via a self-hating conception of Britain’s place in the world, both at home and abroad. We must take the example offered by countless movements across the Anglosphere and the broader Western world to offer a genuine sense that our party supports the unique and treasured culture that the United Kingdom has developed. We must do this first by emphasising the bonds and strength that family values provide to both individuals and the communities which they form a greater part of. For that reason, it is our responsibility as Conservatives to oppose the emphasis of a shallow and false ‘diversity’ which the Labour Party has sought to press in our country’s educational systems, we must protect the rights of women to feel safe and secure in their own spaces, and we must ensure that Britain’s tax system promotes the creation of families which support their members of all ages. If we are to recover as a party, a full reckoning with the issue of immigration is required. Of course, our party implemented many foundations for success during its time in government, such as the creation of a points-based meritocratic system and the Rwanda deterrent, but this came at the cost of any further innovation and action on this front. Already, there are signs that a shift in favour of tackling these concerns is growing, and the Conservative Party must return to its historic legacy as the protector of national sovereignty. We must seek to incorporate this understanding into Britain’s legal framework at every possible opportunity, including via the enactment of a British bill of rights tailored to the UK’s unique political culture.
It is undeniable that, despite our best efforts, the political situation remains one that is difficult both to analyse and to improve. We live in a time of turbulence, populations the world over are looking for parties that offer genuine solutions to the issues they face. I am confident that if we implement the vision I have outlined, we will begin to recover as a party and restore the British people’s faith in our work. There is reason to be optimistic: the disasters and unfitness of this Labour government becomes clearer by the day, and our opposition to the right is unproven and unable to offer any substantive vision for this great country. This century can be a Conservative one just as the past two have been, so long as we step up and renew.